Sean O'Neill Jr. fails drug test; warrant issued for his arrest

By MICHAEL N. PRICE

Monday, November 26, 2012

WEST CHESTER - A 23-year-old man on parole for a 2011 DUI crash who also drunkenly killed a friend in 2006 is now a wanted fugitive after he allegedly tested positive for drugs and alcohol, according to the Chester County District Attorney's Office.

A bench warrant was issued for Sean O'Neill, of Willistown, who shot and killed friend Scott Sheridan after a night of drinking inside the O'Neill family home in September 2006. He was originally charged as an adult but his case was later transferred to juvenile court, where he was found delinquent on charges of involuntary manslaughter and aggravated assault.

More recently, O'Neill was sentenced to 60 days to six months in prison after he crashed a Cadillac SUV into a home on Westtown Road in West Goshen on Nov. 24, 2011. Three people were asleep inside the home at the time of the crash, though no one was injured. O'Neill's blood alcohol level was .258 at the time of the crash, more than three times the legal limit, officials said.

"Sean O'Neill is a convicted criminal who is abusing the system," said Chester County District Attorney Tom Hogan. "From his juvenile conduct to his criminal record as an adult, he has shown a complete lack of respect for the law."

O'Neill served his prison sentence and was released on parole. Since then he allegedly violated his parole by testing positive for alcohol and then illegal drugs, officials said. He then allegedly avoided parole supervision, which resulted in a bench warrant for his arrest.

"We have received some information that O'Neill has fled the country. If that is true, good riddance," Hogan said. "If he remains in the United States, we will catch him and bring him to justice."

Anyone with information related to O'Neill's wherabouts is asked to call the Chester County Detectives at 610-692-5100 or the Chester County Adult Probation Department at 610-344-6290.